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Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Review: Fierce Convictions by: Karen Swallow Prior

About the Book:With a foreword by Eric Metaxas, best-selling author of "Bonhoeffer" and "Amazing Grace."

The
enthralling biography of the woman writer who helped end the slave
trade, changed Britain's upper classes, and taught a nation how to read.

The
history-changing reforms of Hannah More affected every level of
18th-Century British society through her keen intellect, literary
achievements, collaborative spirit, strong Christian principles, and
colorful personality. A woman without connections or status, More took
the world of British letters by storm when she arrived in London from
Bristol, becoming a best-selling author and acclaimed playwright and
quickly befriending the author Samuel Johnson, the politician Horace
Walpole, and the actor David Garrick. Yet she was also a leader in the
Evangelical movement, using her cultural position and her pen to support
the growth of education for the poor, the reform of morals and manners,
and the abolition of Britain's slave trade.

About the Author:Karen Swallow Prior is professor of English at Liberty University. She is the author of Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me and contributes to Christianity Today , The Atlantic, and Relevant magazine, among other publications. She lives in Amherst, VA.

My Review:
The nineteenth century wasn't a time where females went to school, preached, lectured, taught, or even wrote poems or novels. So when Hannah More showed interest in it all, her parents were surprised--at least her father was. Though his convictions told him otherwise, her father alongside her mother, taught her things from English to French to Latin. I wonder if they had any idea that their daughter would become a poet, a reformer, and ultimately an Abolitionist.

The author weaves a tale of the great accomplishments of Hannah More. She creatively leads you through each important detail of Hannah's life and gives you quite a glimpse into the life of a girl during the 19th century. Despite the limitations that was placed upon an average female during those times. Hannah More was ready and willing to rise above those limitations into a place where she could accomplish more amazing feats in her lifetime.

**Disclosure** This book was sent to me free of charge for my honest review from Book Look.